Sahara Cup 1997 : Toronto Diaries (Part II)

MATCH 6 | September 21, 1997

Ganguly sweeps enroute to stroke-filled 96

This was the third time in the series that matches were played on consecutive days. Pakistan finally got on board and prevented a whitewash with a convincing 5-wicket victory with 37 balls to spare. Sourav Ganguly's 96 set up a target of 251 off 48 overs after being 2 overs for slow over rate. He took 2/33 but Inzamam, returning from suspension, superbly anchored the chase building on a blistering start from Shahid Afridi and Ijaz Ahmed.

Ganguly's aggregate for the series was 222 runs. Before the series he had just one ODI wicket, but the Toronto pitches were tailor-made for his bowling and he nabbed 15 wickets and the Player of the Series honour.

This was Sachin's biggest win as a captain since the Titan Cup victory featuring Australia and South Africa. Ramiz Raza was immediately sacked as both teams traveled to Pakistan for a short 3-match Wills Challenge Series to celebrate the golden jubilee of Independence. Saeed Anwar captained them to a 2-1 victory over India who were touring Pakistan for the first time since 1989-90.

India 250/5 | Sourav Ganguly 96, Azhar Mahmood 2/27

Pakistan 251/5 (41.5 overs) | Inzamam-ul-Haq 71*, Sourav Ganguly 2/33

India won by 34 runs | Player of the Match : Sourav Ganguly

Player of the series : Sourav Ganguly

This is part two of the series - Sahara Cup : Toronto Diaries. Read part I here.